TikTok is launching its last legal challenge to avoid a ban in the United States. The company filed a lawsuit on Monday, asking for a delay in the law that would prevent the app from going live so it has time to challenge it in the Supreme Court.
The new court filing comes just three days after the company challenged the original law, currently set to go into effect on January 19, 2025, which requires app stores and internet providers to block TikTok if ByteDance doesn’t sell the app. In their letter, a three-judge panel of appeals courts wrote that the US government “has compelling security reasons that apply directly to the environment in which TikTok operates.”
TikTok has argued that the law is unconstitutional and would unfairly harm creators and businesses that rely on its service. “Estimates show that small businesses on TikTok will lose more than $1 billion in revenue and creators will lose nearly $300 million in one month unless the TikTok ban is stopped,” TikTok said in a statement on Monday.
In its latest filing, TikTok notes that President-elect Donald Trump has promised to “save” the app and that the temporary suspension will allow “the incoming administration to examine the matter.” Currently, the law is scheduled to go into effect the day before Trump’s inauguration.
The company requested a decision on December 16. Even if the announcement is approved, there is no end to the line of legal challenges for the company. If the Supreme Court ends up taking the case, TikTok will have another chance to try to overturn the law.
